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India last month introduced the new draft law to regulate
the broadcasting sector that will also apply to streaming giants. It proposes
the formation of individual content evaluation committees with members from
various social groups who will review and sign off on shows before they are
released.
Though all films in Indian cinemas are reviewed and
certified by a government-appointed board, streamed content is not.
In a closed-door meeting this week, top executives of
several streaming companies including Netflix and Viacom18 which runs the
JioCinema platform, discussed a plan to approach the government to delay and
consider overhauling the bill, said the sources, who declined to be named as
the talks were private.
The bill is open for public consultation until Dec. 10
Netflix and others raised concern the content committees
would lead to excessive pre-screening checks, raising implementation problems
as a high number of content that goes online will need to be reviewed first,
said one of the sources.
Netflix and Viacom18, as well as India's Information and
Broadcasting Ministry, which has proposed the law, did not respond to a request
for comment.
The first source said streaming executives during this
week's meeting flagged risks the law could impact the industry's growth.
Platforms like Netflix, Amazon (AMZN.O), Disney (DIS.N) and
JioCinema have become hugely popular in India, which is set to grow into a $7
billion market for the sector by 2027, according to Media Partners Asia.
India's government says the new law and formation of content
committees will help in "robust self-regulation". The government can
define the committee's size and quorum and only "duly certified"
shows shall be broadcast, the bill says.
"There are worries about extensive government oversight
on streaming platforms," a second source said.
Top Bollywood stars feature in Indian streaming shows, some
of which have faced criticism from lawmakers and the public for scenes deemed
vulgar or offensive.